Out of the Airhead: Woolly Mammoth's 'Stunning'

Map It:  Archives-Navy Mem'l 

THE FIRST THING one notices on the set of Woolly Mammoth's new play, David Adjmi's "Stunning," is its sheer whiteness. The furniture is white, the walls, even child-bride Lily's (Laura Heisler) boots -- all white. In the words of one character, "You live in an igloo!"

All the better to stage a complex and eventually messy character study. Set in a Syrian-Jewish Brooklyn neighborhood, the play explores the suffocating world of Lily, who at 16 has married the much older Ike (Michael Gabriel Goodfriend).

A vapid and sheltered girl, Lily spends her time hanging with her sister and friend, chomping gum, getting manicures and gossiping in pig Latin. Lily's world expands when she hires Blanche (Quincy Tyler Bernstine), an intelligent and worldly black maid who Lily dubs Anna Maria because she prefers her maids Puerto Rican.

Ike, who began courting Lily when she was 12, slaves over his physique and saves his unbridled affection for his goldfish, Kitty. He wants 10 kids, immediately, while Lily takes birth control on the sly.

Much to the volatile and controlling Ike's displeasure, Blanche guides Lily into self-awareness. The more independence Lily exerts, the more the brutality simmering under Ike's surface boils over. But as Lily comes to depend on Blanche, it's clear that Blanche is keeping secrets of her own.

Set designer Dan Conway deserves special mention for his pristine yet functional set, which displays the rooms in Lily's and Ike's modern and minimalist home with a mere flick of a switch.

Directed by Anne Kauffman, "Stunning" delivers a brilliant first act but goes a little off the rails in its closing scenes.

» Woolly Mammoth, 641 D St. NW; through April 6, $35-$57; 202-393-3939. (Archives-Navy Memorial)